Sunday, November 16, 2008

Discussion 11 - 11/17/08

Hi Folks! Thanks for logging in!

So this week let's lighten it up a bit from last week's discussion. I did enjoy the witty conversation of last week's topic and was surprisingly pleased with the passion you guys displayed.

So let me tell you a little story. Once upon a time Mr. L and I went to buy a new television. Really Mr. L wanted a new television, I just went along for the ride. We (he) picked a big, beautiful sparkly new 42" plasma (not LED people . . . that's so 2005) high-definition HP flat screen. It's ginormous. It takes up the entire living room and I SWEAR you can see it from outer space.

And because we had this lovely new television *I* wanted a new surround sound sytem because yall know how important music is to me. So at the same time we (I) bought a Yamaha 600w surround system with a massive receiver that I swear can pick up stations from Alaska. (You can insert your own Home Improvement Tim the toolman Taylor sound here)

And while we were there we debated back and forth about a Blu-Ray player. Back and forth we went. Back. And. Forth. Until we both decided that we needed to do some more research before we jumped into the middle of this technology.

So we left the $400 Blu-Ray player there at the Best Buy and truthfully never looked back. Am I using my massive 42" plasma to it's fullest high-definition capacity? No I am not. Do I care. Ummmm . . . not so much.

However, we've been thinking about it again lately. Debating about jumping on yet another new technology bandwagon. The upside is it's amazing clarity. The downside is the cost, PLUS what happens if it goes the way of the BetaMax tape. Any of you know what Beta is? Yeah. Didn't think so.

So go look at this article from the Kansas City Star. Tell me what you think about Blu-Ray. Is it here to stay? Will it go away if it doesn't catch on this year? Is it worth the cost?

Talk to me . . .

http://tinyurl.com/6mgx4r

66 comments:

Cole,R-1 said...

First, lets say if I had the money for a TV that would use Blu-Ray to its fullest and for a Blu-Ray player I would probably have it.

I believe that Blu-Ray is here, it just hasn't hit mainstream yet, but i think it will eventually, though at the rate technology is evolving it will probably be outdated by the time that happens.
I think eventually everything will be digital, and everything will be downloaded to hard drive. It's already getting more popular. In fact i already prefer that method, It's to much work to put a dvd in the dvd player. Download a movie off of iTunes and i can watch it right there.

Either way it goes. I think Blu-ray might actually catch on for a while

Maness, J-6 said...

Blu-ray may be expensive, but it has more memory than both regular and HD DVD's and can run properly due to the laser being able to focus on smaller spots. it may be expensive but i see it as well worth the memory, especially in the future when movies and games become more complex and require more memory. There is the concern that it wont become popular, but with HD DVD obsolete and the PS3, Blu-Ray will be popular sooner or later

Thompson,O-1 said...

NO! I Extremly dislike blue-ray and all other things like it( like the PS3) I bet there will be lots of tech problems and not user friendly, get TIVO. or a DVR. forget blue-ray, get something with an acronym in it. and as long as I can see what im watching or playing, all I need is a nice suround sound system, and theres no blue ray suround sound system.

mcgown,a-1 said...

I believe Blu-Ray will reach a point where it is the "standard". For starters the HD tv's are just reaching the point where they are being seen in most homes, and as a resultm more models and better prices of HD tv are being seen in homes now. The only way the Blu-Ray will reach its peak is if companies start taking DVD players off the shelves and replacing them with Blu-Ray. I would say wait it out a while before purchasing one.

Broadway,M-1 said...

Yes blu-ray is the winner pf of the format war. But the HD-DVD is still more widely use. I have a Xbox 360 it use HD-DVD and it better than the PS3(it uses Blu-Ray) But the blu-ray will problemly catch soon.

martines,j-1 said...

i think that its a bit expencive, its just a stronger laser being used than a regular dvd player and there isnt to many choices of movies to watch it would be great for a home theater system or some one who does nothing but watch movies

murillo, j - 1 said...

The software and video game giant had supported the losing HD-dvd format in its xbox consoles but has reppatedly denied any plans to switch to Blue-ray. Instead, Microsoft says it will support digital downloads.

Ashley Manis said...

I'm very torn on this subject. You have the nice TV, but then again not many people are into blu-ray. All the things that blu-ray has to offer(like pristine picture and amazing sound and ect.) sound inviting and its really shocking that people haven't already taken the plunge for this technology.
But on the other hand, HD TV is available and you can use your regular DVD player, no fancy laser reader needed. It also has nearly every movie ever made already on DVD, something blu-ray doesn't offer (yet).
The only thing I would advise you, is to wait until other people begin to take the plunge and it isn't going to be outdated in a matter of days.

lathan,l-1 said...

ITs sounds like it will be funn just to other labtop becuase we could use some more things. Its nice to see people come up with more stuff, but i agree with cole we already have one but it wont be rong to see a knew come out with a holw lot of new things. Have you seen them they are so nice and they look like they are worth it. but you need to look at the price of the new blue ray even though its so cool, to look at it if I had the money I would get it.
I would like to get it one but when ever I get the money trust me I would get one, I just like how they have that blue-ray .

Gilbreath,J-1 said...

Personally, I don't care much for all this 'High Definition' stuff. It's just another way for the companies to get people to buy their product. It carries a big set of words, 'High Definition' and 'Blu-Ray', which makes it sound important. Thus, the masses will really want one.

If it plays a film that I like, such as Francis Ford Cappola's 'Bram Stoker's Dracula', or Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children, and if it can play DVD versions of my anime, then I'm happy. Simple and sweet desu.

Tri-Edge said...

ok I don't have a HD TV simply because I don't have room for it and my parents think that the flat TV's are gonna break the second you turn it on. (let me tell you about them. They are crazy nut jobs that thinks new technology means that its gonna break. I want a flat screen but they don't see the difference.)

I do how ever have a blu-ray player....kinda. I have a PS3 which can play blu-ray disk and play games. It might cost more but its a good buy, you get a blu-ray player and a game system in one.

Besides blu-ray totally owned HD-DVD without putting up much of a fight.

Liles, T-1 said...

Blue Ray? I dont have much to say about it because i honestly know 100x more now after reading the story than i did before. But after all that ive read it seems worthy of the $400 set back, but i want to know how is it able to holde 50 gigs of information, what is different about a blu ray disc that a compact disc? is it the dics's layers or the burning process itself? But i wouldnt waist my money on so called "superior" quality video and sound because when im watching a movie after about 2 or 3 minutes im so into it that i no longer am able to even see little flaws like a fluid or unsharp picture.

Hollingsworth,C-1 said...

I'm going to sound like a geek on this one but i think that if more video game consoles supported it (like the PS3) that they would sell better and NOT go the way of the "betamax" If these two were together then it would be an eaier decision for me." Oh i get to play cool games and what is this...Blu-ray? Bounus!" It would also get more people to try it, than just selling the players by themselves with a huge price tag.

Calderon,A-1 said...

i think that is a good system for your television but is really expensive, and i think that not everybody can affort it but it might be the best thing for your movies, even though that you can not play the regular DVD's in it, but that is a good system for your home. and i do not agree that they have to change all the digital stuff because the new stuff is expensive and we do not have too much money.

chanelectronic said...

firstly, i believe vernon ray would use blu-ray because it calls to him. literally.

secondly, i think it will catch on eventually - maybe not right now with the economy being in the way it is, and this expensive mini-computer/dvd with a laser gig is popping up everywhere. I think in th end, it'll be just like a DVD vs. a VHS, when in 2000 everyone made the ridiculously large switch. The only thing we have to worry about is a. will more videos be made on Blu-Ray discs and b. the price or c. will there be a compromise on the switch and consules will be made to support both DVD and Blu-Ray.

edlin said...

Well i say that the Blue Ray can be as good as they say but i think it is to expensive and well yes i think later more people will start buying it more and more but for right now i will stick to a regular DVD!

Dietrich,R-3 said...

This kinda stinks i mean sooner or later all dvds will become blu-ray and the only way to watch movies would be to spend $300 on a blu-ray player. Not that but also they only got 1000 movies so far... but the upside to all of this is that the blu-ray players will rule the dvd player domain but when that happens the blu-ray player will be $25 to $100 which will be fordable to pay. though this christmas it would be cool to see the dark knight in blu-ray...

anderson,p-3 said...

Blu-Ray is still really new and i think it will take more time to see if it is here to stay. It might take a couple of years but i think it will slowly progress and talk the place of the DVD players over the course of the next few years and more things become avalible with it.

Hernandez, Ruben 3rd said...

i think this new blue-ray technology i s awesome but i would not pay 315 for that. Blue-Ray looks better than DVD but they dont have all the movies DVD have. Thats a reason people dont buy Blue-Rays. for me i dont care

Campbell,A-4 said...

Personaly I don't think Blu-Ray isn't all that great. To many problems with the formant. And the price is waaaaaaaaaaaayyyy to high. I mean I could buy a PS3 for the same amount of a nice Blu-Ray DVD player. If they droped it a couple of hundred bucks it might catch on better but till then I'm sticking with my Xbox 360 and its regular DVD format.

Auxier, Emily - 4 said...

Yah im not going to lie - i dont know much about all of this blu-ray stuff. i mean if its the new thing then of corse people are going to get it. its the "lastest" software. If its new and cost tons - then most likely it wont take long for everyone to have it. then they will just come up with something better. I guess its here to stay. Why not.

Brice, R-4 said...

Honestly i dont see the big deal in blue-ray. I dont care to buy many movies unless i absolutely must have it. Even then I dont need some 400$ blue-ray player to make the picture a smidget better. I suppose if your a movie nut and love picture and have the money go for it. But i doubt it is going to hit the mainstream before more blue-ray movies come out and the price drops

borerw-4 said...

i think that blu-ray is the next step. we went from vcrs to dvds and now its blu-ray. i think its just another in a line of technology to make entertainment more entertaining. the down side is the cost and thats what always sets some people back. i know when dvds and dvd players first came out it was the cost that kept my family from getting it and we stuck with our vhs until they basicly stoped makeing vhs taps so its always going to be the cost with me,but in the end we will probably get one. its only a mater of time.

edwards, a - 4 said...

Blu-ray is just a new and improved version of a DVD player, yeah? I'm sorry, I don't really know what the blu-ray is and my parents don't know what it is either (we're so Amish). And it seems very expensive. Maybe if it was more afforable (which I doubt) I most certainly would try it. Until Kingdom Come, I'm just gonna play all my DVDs on a DVD player or on my Playstation 2 or 3.

ferrell, a-4 said...

mmm.. I wouldn't really agree that it's the "latest" software as Emily said.. but idk, I have mixed decisions about it.. but for me, and people that think like me and stuff, it's not really worth it. yes I love to watch like a picture that actually feels like your there and having a sound that's better than at movies and just puts you into the movie. but in reality, its not the money its worth to me, I mean I can still get the same emotions for the most part watching a movie on my laptop with the crappy on-board pictures.. In my opinion, it’s not going to be like a Wii or anything, I mean its already been out for about a year and if it hasn’t already gone berserk then I think it will be a lot harder to get people to go crazy about this Blu-Ray..

Hand Turkey

GARRETT,K-4 said...

ME BEING SIMPLY ME, WOULD NOT BUY THE BLU RAY. IM JUST NOT A BIG TECHNICAL PERSON. I HAVE DVR AND THATS ALL I NEED IT SEEMS TO DO ME JUST FINE. BUT U MRS.L, YOU'RE A BIG TECHNICAL PERSON SO HAVING THE BLU RAY MIGHT BE A GOOD INVESTMENT FOR YOU. IT SEEMS COOL. I THINK YOU SHOULD WAIT JUST A LIL WHILE AND SEE WHERE THE PRODUCTION OF THE BLU RAY GOES.

Bixler,T-6 said...

I think the Blu-ray is just a rip off company. If blu-ray was so high on price than HD. The effects are awsome and better than HD but it is to expensive for people, but it doesnt deserve that

Meredith,B-6 said...

I would have to say if you have the money for it go for it Mrs. L.

I think Blu-Ray is here to stay becuase it totally surpasses HD-DVD's for sounds and picture quality so even though it coyuld still go ether way i think blu-ray will catch

Byrd,N-6 said...

I really dont think mush about the blue ray player it seems to me like its not worth the 400$ pice tag. Also ive noticed that there is very few movies are capable of playing on the blue ray player. I do believe that one day that it will take the place of HD but not until the price goes down.

wallace,c-6 said...

i think that blue ray and h-d are pretty awesome myself. i would definately get that bad boy! i cant believe how clear of a picture u can get on a tv now with tv and movies.ur house would definately be where the party is at! everyone would be like, hey what are you ding this weekend. o im goin to mrs. Ls. why? cuz she has freakin blue ray along with an awesome tv, thtas why!

Sauceda, Maria=]- 6 said...

To be honest i cant notice the diference in blue ray dvds..I think you need to buy a high quality tv and have other components to actually appreciate the high quality..My brother bought one but i think they will drop in price as they come up with more dvds and the demad increases..I would buy one bt maybe until summer..lol

Abdul-786 said...

i think blueray is a lot better disc to put your data in like if u compare dvd hd and blueray blue ray is goona be a lot better so blueray should be common like dvds.

Lopez, M-1~☺ said...

Eh, well it doesn't matter what I watch DVD's with as long as I get to watch my movies as loud as I want it. But, the Blu-Ray would probably be a better for the sound quality and picture. Either way, right now it doesn't concern me at this point.

lee, s - 7 said...

That Blu-Ray have dvd player and other. I never seen before that Blu-Ray movie. I never have it. I think that money have much money. But I don't know how use Blu-Ray and player. I think same thing have PS3 have one HD DVD and same Blu-Ray.

Copeland, Juston7 said...

i dont think that it is worth that much even though it shows really clear but i do think that it is here to stay because once other companies see what it can do everyone will change to blu ray they will sell this year

McCorvey,T-1 said...

Well, i think that Blu-Ray is a fun and intresting project to learn about.But, i don't think that some people will see the difference, in buying a Blu-Ray than a DVD-Player.

arriola,brett-1 said...

i think blueray is eventually going to be the new dvd but for now there to expensive for everyone to switch so enjoy your dvd's a little long XD

Jones-C-1 said...

Blue ray is cool but when it comes down to it people arent going to want to pay the hefty price for it. Maybe it will catch on in the future but by then it might alreay be a distant memory.....

rodriguez,stephen-1 said...

It's here to stay. I think mostly because its hit top of alot of people's list for christmas.
I know for a fact at least 40 families are getting it including my grandparents!

Johnson,O-2 said...

I say think of it this way: When the VCR came out did you think that it would get far or not? OR it could be like the Gameboy were the Gameboy Color came out right after it. But also I would hate to have to buy all those movies all over again in HIGH DEFINTION *booming voice.
I say wait and see how far it goes or if something better comes along

Baker,M-1 said...

I can't really say that I care on this topic, because I normally don't watch movies, and if I do I do it on my laptop. Personallly i wouldn't speend 200-300 dollars on a DVD player, because it will sit and gather dust(like my current one is doing now)

allensworth, z-2 said...

i honestly don't think it's worth 400 smackeroo's and though it'd be nice to have and i would most likely enjoy the quality of my movies more, i'm not rich enough to go out and get one when the price drops then it's possible my dad will go for one but that's probably only cause our current dvd player is utterly jacked up

brittain,w-2 said...

Blu-Ray might catch on to some people, but unless they lower the price on it i highly doubt people will buy a blu-ray player. it could be here to stay, it could be here to not stay.
either way, i dont know if i would get one cuz i just download movies, compress them, and put them on my ipod--or i just watch the uncompressed version of them on my computer

reed, k - 2 said...

Blu-rays are on the expensive side but it can hold more memory. I dont think I would get it though because it probaby has alot of technical problems I would rather use the old stuff rather than the new.

packard,a-2 said...

i think that blu-ray is dumb and we dont need anything else to make the stupid rich people think that they are superior just because their movie has more clarity, personally i'm not paying that much for clarity!! we can just deal with plain old clarity and sound that comes out of my t.v. and not an expensive player that i dont need!! i think that rich movie lovers will get it caught on but not that much, then they will come out with another system that will out rank the blu-ray system!! so basically it's like the game systems they're hot until the next , then it's bye bye old and in with the new and shiny!!

villanueva, manuel, N. 1 said...

I think the blue-ray will hit, but just not now. And its a little bit too expensive.

mayfield,s-1 said...

I like it and I think it should stay and if my dad sees it, it will probably end up in our house. I like to have surround sound while I watch my movies at home.

Anonymous said...

@ Thompson, O- there's no TIVO or DVR surround sound system so why get that?

@ Ashton- there's no way in heck that DVD players will come off of the market for another 10 years... VHS players still aren't off the market

@ Maria- exactly. No HDTV=Not much different with Blu-Ray

@ Chase- I completely agree. I think I'll be askin for a ride to Mrs. L's

Price: Blu-Ray is expensive, but everything starts out that way. Like usual, there has already been a drop in price after 6-8 months. There will be another drop and it will become even more affordable. The other thing is that the actual Blu-Ray Discs are more expensive. Not only do you have to buy the BR player, but the discs to replace all of your favorite movies and all of the new ones coming out for atleast 10 dollars over DVD price

Formats: The Blu-Ray is definately superior to DVD, VHS, MP4, etc. right now but it won't have much effect until the TV can support 1080p or other HD resolutions. That is when the movies start moving into crazy-real land of HD.

Blu-Ray also has special features that cannot be accesed on other formats. They add extra information about the movie. I've also seen some that have the movie soundtrack added to it.

It's a win-win situation to buy or not to buy. You can live with or without it. Buying it would be nice but would also be money. Not buying it would be money but not the same quality.

Lanham said...

graded

Ryan . . . you can tell your parents that I've had a flat screen of one type or another since they came out. It's not gonna break the minute you turn it on.

I think Mr. Brice is onto something. If you're an absolute fanatic of movies and you sit and watch them every weekend maybe it IS worth the money. As for my household . . . well, we barely get to sit on the weekends, much less watch movies. I think in the entire time we've had DirectTV we've ordered maybe 4 movies.

And Jacob . . . Dang Bobby! You were in a writing mood this morning.

tutt,matthew said...

I, Beleve that blue ray is to expencive for its own good and will probably become obsolete as once as some one elce comes up with something better, but not any time soon.

cruz,raymond,a-class3 said...

Iv never seen blu-ray but i here it is awsome, i only have dvr and it sucks. i also have HD dvd's and the way that blu-ray sounds,HD sucks.Even though it may be really expensive, it will be worth it when im watching it with my girl friend and she tells me im awsome for buying Blu-ray!

otis,j-3 said...

I havn't even considered Blu-Ray yet, and definitely am swayed towards no. The price for the player would have to drastically be reduced and that probably wont happen before the next big thing gets released. I favor the idea of high quality and all, but I also like being able to download the same data onto a hard drive which could hold multiple movies. However, when the costs go down or something else comes out, I will probably end up with Blu-Ray anyway; im usually a step behind in technology.

Patton,A-1 said...

i think blue ray is here to stay.it is expensive but i think it will be worth the cost.i think it will catch on soon because people are going to want to see a better picture.

robles,l-3 said...

I think that blu-ray is expensive, and that’s why people are not in to it as much as the had DVDs. even if the blu-ray is way better but people are not really in to it. Blu-ray is going to hit later on because it has more memory and the laser is allot better.

Gonzalez, C-1 said...

The transition from regular DVD or anything that has D's and V's in its name, I mean everythings already been said about it. ITs eventually going to be like a standard dvd player or same thing with the hd-tv's and so forth. I'm not really all up to date with the whole blu-ray thing but to it wouldn't make a difference. We still use vcr's and have some lame tv's so I'm not overly dominated by the magnificant wonders of technology. Thats pretty much all I have to say I guess.

allensworth, d4 said...

i think Blu-Ray is pretty darn cool! the picture is amazing and the sound is flawless! and the fact that the disks can hold 50GB of memory just blows my mind...thats over 12 times the amount that my ipod can hold

och,s-4 said...

So I don't agree with Blu-ray...well, I mean I don't like it. The Blu-ray technology makes everything in focus in movies. When the main focus of the scene may be two people having a conversation, everything in the background is in focus...which distracts the viewers from the main focus of the scene. Movies weren't made to be completely in focus. The things going on in the background are just so the movie is more real - it wouldn't be convincing if you say a white screen behind the actors, now would it? The background is just added stuff that doesn't matter for the movie.

Cuarenta,A-6 said...

blu-ray... it sounds like just another gadget that will get worn out of use until something better comes along... i am all for technology but it seems pointless to get all caught up on the latest technology just to find out its time to upgrade again

arnold,t.7 said...

Lets say if i had money to buy a Blu-ray i would love to have it in my room because it have more memory then the regular and HD DVD's. And i would like to stay home to watch what on the Blu-ray and not go anywhere but home.

Trikosko, M-1 said...

I think Blu-Ray has great ability to become popular, it is expensive right now ,but I believe prices will come down like DVD players did. Blu-Ray has won the format war and is already in the PS3 which will help it become more widely used.

cano,ruben-7 said...

The Blu-Ray is here to stay although is goin to take a while before everyone gets hands on this babe!!!
I think Blu-Ray is high quality software and allows you to watch your favorite movies and so what and what bette if you had a great sound system!!

Rigsby,D-1 said...

I do think that it is here for people who love it. But you will always have people that dont like something. But 2 me i think just buying the dvd of the internet and stream it to your tv is the fastest way. When you can just buy right there at your house then you dont have to go looking out 4 the dvd.Plus If you buy the dvd it could have been blue-Ray type so you win in both way.

Lanham said...

graded

John O . . . I'm right there with ya. As geeky and techno-nerd as I am I *always* seem to be behind the trend when it comes to tech stuff.

Oh and . . . one more person and we will have the perfect blog week. No missing grades. Come on . . . one more person, one more person, one more person . . .

taylor, Q - 6 said...

i personally thinks its not really worth the price eventhough its better than a dvd i still wouldnt buy it...there's always someone around you that will though so ill just mooch off of them...hehe

Lanham said...

Woooohoooooooo! Perfect blog week! You guys ROCK!

lathan,l-1 said...

hey have a great thinks giving and and a safe holiday...!Mrs.F1 your the best watch t.v. and yall eat lost of turkey. But I realy like the blu-ray.